Dead In The Water
by catchingthegirlonfire
Summary: Jack manages to survive the sinking of the Titanic, after being abandoned by Rose, who assumes he tried to steal the Heart of the Ocean necklace. After Titanic, Jack assumes the name "Jay Gatsby", and spends his days searching for riches. He throws massive parties every weekend in the hopes of catching her attention. But does he?


So many things have changed since Titanic. Man, _way _too many things have changed. When the ship sank, Rose was safe inside her lifeboat, with her mother Ruth, seemingly a thousand miles away from me in the water. Thankfully, Fabrizio and Tommy rescued me from certain death, as I was handcuffed to the wall as the ship was filling up. Though I think she almost didn't believe that I stole Cal's necklace, she never went back for me. I never had his necklace, I put it right back where I found it, like I said. He knows it, and so does she.

I was one of the six people saved from the water, I nearly froze to death before they got to me. When the ship was starting to really go under, I got separated in the crowd from Tommy and Fabrizio, who decided to try to wait for a life boat. Me? Ah, well, I had a different plan. I ran right up to the top of the boat, right where I had saved Rose the first time. I figured nobody would stand a chance with the boats that late in the game.

When the boat went under, I got sucked with it. I nearly didn't come back up. Sometimes I wish I hadn't. I found a plank of wood floating nearby that I was able to lay on, on top of the water. Eventually, a boat came back, though it almost didn't notice me.

On board the Carpathia, I thought of looking for Rose several times. I even worked up the nerve to try to sneak into the first class areas to talk to her, like I did on Titanic. A steward caught me and dragged me back to my class, third class. I spent several days looking for Fabrizio and Tommy, even Cora and Helga, but none of them were on the ship. All my friends were dead. When they asked me what my name was, I gave them Jay Gatsby, an alias I've decided to take up. There's nothing left for me here, except maybe Rose, whom had still yet to come after me. I thought for sure a few times she'd come or even just ask about me. That time in the Titanic suite was the last I had seen of her. For a while at least.

After we landed in New York, they held all of these hearings and questionings about Titanic, but I was never asked to go. I was just another piece of third class scum to them. Besides, nobody cared about the people who weren't famous or held titles or anything. I got out of New York as fast as I could, and broke for the midwest.

Eventually, I settled down in Minnesota, even tried to go to college. I enrolled in St. Olaf's in the fall. I dropped out after the first couple weeks. I couldn't take working as a janitor. Though I've done dirty jobs before, that's not what bothered me about it. After Titanic, it really opened my eyes that the rich guys always get the girls. I met this guy, Dan Cody, a copper tycoon, who invited me on a ten year yacht trek from Girl Bay. Naturally, I accepted.

Over the next five years, I learned a lot from Cody. At least until he dropped dead. So there I was, 27, living high off the hog. Until, his damn mistress cheated me out of the money I was supposed to inherit from him. From that point on I focused on setting myself up real good. I thought if I set myself up, I could get a girl like Rose, and keep her this time.

In 1917, I joined the infantry, right at the start of the World War. I had never been in the military before, but I was good at it. During the war, I became a major and fought in many battles. I became a military hero for my participation in the Marne and the Argonne. When the war ended, I had enough to support myself through school, a real school. I went to Trinity College, Oxford in England. And Oxford man at last. Almost went to art school in Paris, but that just wasn't me anymore. I've lost the will to draw since Rose left me. Instead, I headed off to England for the next four years.

When I got back to America, prohibition was in full swing. Bootlegging was a lucrative business, and I soon became a part of it. It was easy money, after all. Soon enough, I had more money than I could ask for. I moved into a house in the West Egg of Rhode Island. All of my clients wondered why, as the West Egg was thought of what Rose would have called "new money". All of the old big wigs, the guys who have been rich their whole lives, live across the water in East Egg. Still, I had my mansion, and so did they. We are equals now they like it or not.

For a while I went to all the fancy restaurants and threw extravagant parties. None of it was enough for me. I became famous for my grand parties, which went on most every weekend at my house. During these parties, I might make an appearance, _maybe_. Sometimes I wouldn't come out at all. On one occasion, I remember, this lead to a great discovery. I learned that Cal Hockley and his wife, Rose, _my_ Rose had moved into a home across the water in East Egg. I read it in the newspaper. I even saved the page with her name on it. My heart pounded. And each and every subsequent weekend I threw parties so grand, so extravagant, all in the hopes of catching her attention.

I thought I saw her once, you know, in the beginning, outside her house by the dock. A green light shone to me, very similar to the casts the lights gave on the Titanic lifeboats. That was a sickly green, but this was a most lovely sight. It was so lovely, I even got into my rowboat and rowed halfway to her. By the time I reached anywhere near the shore, she had gone away.

A few days later, a knock arose at my door, in the middle of the night. I sent my maid down to answer it. It was her. Though I was always grasping for her attention, I didn't expect to get it at that moment. "Hello, Jack," she said, standing in my doorway.

"Leave us," I said, waving off the maid.

"Look at you!" she exclaimed, "No more little poor boy, huh?"

"No, ma'am," I say, "I couldn't get anywhere as a poor man."

"You would've done fine," she said, causing the conversation to lag.

"How did you find me?" I asked, out of the blue.

"The newspaper," she said, "I saw your face."

"At one of your parties," she added.

"Did you?" I said, nonchalantly.

She nods and said, "It's strange that fate has lead us together again,"

"Fate has a way of doing that sometimes, I suppose," I said.

"You didn't make it very easy," she said, "Changing your name."

"You weren't exactly the easiest person to get to, either," I said, "I tried, you know."

"I didn't know," Rose said, hanging her head low, "Otherwise..." she trailed off.

"It's alright, I got the picture," I said.

"That's not it," Rose said, "I wanted to come back to you. But after the sinking, I just couldn't."

"I had to marry Cal," she said, beginning to cry, "I just had to."

She threw herself on top of me, and I hugged her to comfort her. "I heard you had a kid," I said.

"Pammy," she said, "She's three."

"It can't be all bad," I said.

"It's not," she said, pausing, "I love her."

She drew away from my arms to look up at me and said, "But I never loved him."

Cal, despite the fact he won her hand, never truly won her heart. I saw my chance, and I took it.

"Then be with me," I said, "Forget the past."

"How could you ever love me again?" Rose said, crying again, "I left you to die! Even though I knew you didn't take it. I saved myself, myself over you."

"I know," I said, "But I never stopped loving you. Hell, the last few months I've thrown weekend-long parties, just to try to catch your attention. Just for you."

I added, "Don't you understand it, Rose? We're meant to be together!"

"I know, I know," Rose says, "But we just can't."

"Why can't we?" I said.

"Because of Cal!" she said.

"What can he give you that I can't," I said, throwing my arms up, gesturing to the mansion.

"But I've got Pammy..." she said, trailing off.

"We could make this work," I said.

For the next few months, I saw Rose at least once a week. Our affair intensified and caught the old fire we once had. We were madly in love with each-other once again, that is, until Cal caught wind.

All good things must come to an end. That's at least what I tell myself as I write this all down. I want people to know our story. Yesterday I gave Rose an ultimatum, either she marries me or she leaves me. She told me she couldn't turn Pam's life upside down like that. She tore my heart in two, for the second time, and it is irrevocably damaged now. Sometimes I think my life would've been better off without all this, if I had died in the water. What's done cannot be undone. I know he'll come, Cal, he'll come for me one day. He surely knows about us now. Just don't think of me too badly when I'm gone, alright? I still love Rose, and I would die for her, even still. But we must never be, and I know that now.

_Upon writing the letter, he leaves the note on the kitchen table, and goes to the pool to catch some fresh air. Unbeknownst to him, Cal sneaks inside and reads what he has written. Cal stands at the edge of the pool, pointing a gun at the back of Jack's head, unseen by him, and pulls the trigger. Jack's body sinks to the bottom of the pool, dead in the water, as he should have been many years before when Titanic made its plunge deep into the sea. _


End file.
